Salt Lake Tribune | 1908-10-11 | Page 6 | Smith's Double Dealing with the "Word of Wisdom."

SMITH'S DOUBLE DEALING WITH THE "WORD OF WISDOM." Tho attitude of President Joseph F. Smith at tho recent conference, con-ference, on tho liquor question, was in startling contradiction to his "inspired" remarks at tho April conferenco of 1S9S. At that timo he was up in arms against tho criticisms that had boon directed .upon tho church's commercial institutions, and ho entered a hot defense de-fense of tho salo of tea, coffee, and tobacco by tho big co-op. slorc, and of liquor by tho Ziou drug store. Hero is what ho said on that occasion, in rcpl3r to attacks mado on tho violation of tho Word of Wisdom that is implied in tho traffic in those tabooed articles by tho church mercantilo and drug institutions: Soiuo of our prctendodly pious pooplc, a few years ago, were shocked and horrified by sociug tho symbol of the All-Seeing Eyo and tho words "Holiness to tho Lord" in gilt letters over , Uio front of Zion's Co-operative Mercantile Institution. Especially Espe-cially was this the caso with some of our brethren when they found these letters ovor the drug department of Z. C. M. I. Why was it? Why, somo of these pious (?) Mormons found that Z. C. M. I., under the symbol of the All-Seeing Eye and the sacred words, "Holiness to tho Lord," sold tea and coffee, and tobacco, aud other things, possibly, that Lattor-day Saints ought not to use; and at tho drug store, Z. C. M. I. kept liquors of various kiuds for medical purposes. It was terribly shocking to some of tho Latter-day Saints that under theso holy words liquors should bo kept for sale. Has it cvor injured nie, in any senso of tho ' word because Z. C. M. I. drug store kept liquor for sale? Have I been under the necessity of gnzsling liquid poison? Havo I made myself a sot because liquor was kopt for salo by Z. C. M. I.? I am not the worse for it, thank the Lord. And who else is? No one, except the pious Mormons (?) who in open day or under the cover of night would go into tho drug store and buy liquor to drink. If he could not get it thero, ho would not patronize Z. C. M. I. at all, but would go somowhero else to deal. Sormon of President Josoph F. Smith in Salt Lako tabemaclo, at Sixty-eighth annual conference of tho Church of ' Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Wednesday, April 6, 1898; sco official roport of conference in Church Historian's offico, pago 11. Here is an express and hot defeusc of tho trado in tea, coffee, tobacco, and liquors b3- the church coucerus named. That defenso covers them all, and the' Word of Wisdom is altogether lost sight of. And tho Smith defenso is of tho usual order of tho apologistic "argument." It is all right for tho Z. C. M. I. to sell tea, coffee, and tobacco, "aud other things that possibly tho Latter-day Saiuts ought not. to use," and if "the pious Mormon" (wo uso Smith '3 words) could not get his liquor in the church drug store "ho would go somewhere else to deal." Besides being an express admission of tho craving of! the "pious Mormon" for drink, note in Smith's apolog3' tho familiar idea that this pious Mormon scekiug liquor "would go somewhere elso to deal." It is the same old saioonist argument, . 1 'If I don't sell, somebody elso will," with the added admission that tho Z. C. M. I. drug store has to keep liquor on salo in order to satisfy tho demands of "tho pious Mormon." At tho conference of last woek, however, President Smith went squareb' back on his former 'inspiration." lie sees now a chanco to make a hit politically, as he thinks, b3 pretending a hatred for all violations of tho Word of Wisdom; ho objects now to tho use-of tea, coffoe, and tobacco, though the Z. C. M. T. is selling these things just as before; and the fact that it is doiug so proves President Smith's present h'pocri33 for if he were in earnest he would havo that salo stopped, and with no sales, the Saints would be largel;' obliged to conform to tho Word of Wisdom, as Smith Irypocritically urged them to do whilo tho church concerns are constantly offering offer-ing theso articles for sale, and so tempting the Saints against the "inspired voice" of their "prophet, soor, and rovelator." In like mauner, the Z. C M. T. drug store keeps right on with its sales of J liquors, and so does Smoot's drug store at Provo, a sufficient proof that tho voice of inspiration is intended oub' to "deceive the Gentiles," Gen-tiles," not to be heeded 13 the Saints. And since it is not in the least heeded by the Saints, it is evident that the words uttered ou this subject b5' Presideut Smith at the recent .conference aro not his real sentiments, but that his words to tho April conferenco of 1S9S came direct from his heart, he having at that time no moral pla3' to I make for tho edification of tho Gentiles, . while this 3'ear the pla' was on in the most spectacular staging. Contrasting the emphatic words iu favor of tho liquor aud other traffic antagonistic to tho Word of Wisdom, uttered by President Smith at the April conference of 1S93, with his far less pointed remarks at the October conference of .1903, wo again come to the conclusion that he was much more in earnest ten 3'cars ago than he is now. Here is his recent talk on this point as given in ' the church orgau: In' many localities we find saloons and other places of ill repute, re-pute, and there arc evidences which show that Latter-day Saints aro supporting these places. This is all wrong, no member of the' Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints can afford to ! cross the threshold of a saloon or othor disreputablo place. "' A wavo of temperance is sweeping ovor this State, as well as elsewhere, said President Smith, and he declared himself heartily in favor of the movement and ho endorsed it fully. The spectacle of young men and boys . walking the streets with a pipe or cigarette in their mouths is of such frequent occurrence that somo consider it of no consequence Of late years it has been common for actors to light cigars and cigarettes on tho stage. To me, such a practice is an insult to Latter-day Saints. If I had boys growing up I would not want thorn to attend theatres where such roprchensible practices were taking placo, o My remarks on theso subjects arc only to impress upon the Lattor-day Saints the necessity for observing the Word of Wisdom, Wc endorse evory movomont iu favor of tem-perance.Defieret tem-perance.Defieret News report of sermon of President Joseph F. Smith in Salt Lako tabernacle, Sunday, October 4., 1908. All of which proves that inspiration may or may uot bo inspired, aud that' a political demagogue in the pulpit is quite as likeiy to be at cross purposes with himself as a political demagogue on tho stump.